Research themes

Worldwide, many infections remain undiagnosed and untreated due to poor diagnostic tools. as a result i-sense engineered new digital tools and technologies to help track, test and treat infectious disease. 

Our researchers worked to harness the power of mobile phones, biomedical engineering, nanotechnology, genomics and big data to detect diseases much earlier than ever before, helping people gain faster access to care and protect populations.

Track 

We explored how self-reported symptoms via social media (Twitter) and web searches (Google) could help track early indicators of infectious disease outbreaks. This allowed us to detect infection before people attend clinics and in regions that lack the resources for traditional public health systems.

Test 

We created low-cost, user-friendly, mobile phone-connected tests to accurately diagnose infections at point-of-care, supporting front line health workers and self-testing. These tests widened access to testing and provided faster results, protecting patients and populations in the UK and developing countries. 

Treat 

We embedded diagnostic tools and digital technologies into new models of online patient pathways to understand how they can impact treatment and care for people in the UK and developing countries. The ability of mobile phones to connect test results into healthcare helps public health systems identify unusual disease clusters to prevent spread of emerging infections and also to ensure patients receive rapid treatment and care.